LINCOLN - A Lincoln woman and her dog are injured, and her Yorkshire Terrier dead, after they were allegedly attacked by a pit bull in Manville last week, Lincoln Police Chief Brian Sullivan told The Breeze.

The police report indicates that Railroad Street resident Luz E. Molina, 55, was walking her two leashed dogs - Tyson, a Yorkshire Terrier, and Poochie, a Bichon-Poodle mix - through the Enrico Caruso Club parking lot at 9 Vose St. when "a large brown and white pit bull, later identified as Tank and owned by Simon G. Moussa, of 104 Bouvier Ave., began to attack her two dogs.

"Molina stated she did all she could to protect her dogs, but Tank was much too strong and powerful to overcome," Lincoln Patrol Officer Russell Enos stated in his report. "Molina stated Tank locked its jaws around the neck of Tyson and began to shake him from side to side before letting go to violently attack her other dog, Poochie."

Molina, whose clothes were covered in blood, had bite marks on her hands and fingers, and cuts and scrapes on her elbows after being knocked down by Tank during the attack, the report states, adding that she transported her dogs to Ocean State Veterinary Specialists in East Greenwich, "where Poochie was being treated for life threatening injuries" and "Tyson was pronounced dead on arrival."

The report states that Molina said she was going to Kent County Hospital with her husband, Raymond Dupont, to be treated for her injuries.

Sullivan said that "fortunately," such incidents are not common in Lincoln. He said this is the third or fourth time that he can remember that a dog has attacked another dog or a person.

Tank has been quarantined at the Lincoln Animal Shelter since Thursday, per state law. Once the waiting period is up, the owner may voluntarily choose to have the dog euthanized - something Moussa said he has no plans to do - or submit to a vicious dog hearing.

Sullivan said Moussa, 25, faces no criminal charges, but he could face civil charges. State law mandates the owner of a dog that kills an animal is subject to a $550 fine.

Town Administrator T. Joseph Almond called the incident "horrific."

He said he does not have a personal stake in the pit bull debate, and does not see a ban on the breed heading to Lincoln anytime soon.

"I don't know if that's needed yet," based on the number of incidents, Almond said.

He did, however, take issue with the Rhode Island General Assembly's passage of a bill this year that prohibits municipalities from enforcing breed-specific bans.

"It may not be the dog's fault," Almond said, but if they do bite, they have the ability to do more damage than other breeds.

"What if that's somebody walking by with their child in a carriage?" Almond said.

Moussa called his 93-pound, 13-month-old dog "a baby" with no history of going after people. He has had the dog since Tank was four weeks old, he said.

Moussa, who moved back into his parents' home on Bouvier Avenue a few months ago, said his dog has gotten out of the back yard before, as was the case in this incident, to play with area kids.

"Everybody loved the dog," Moussa told The Breeze. "He's just a love bug."

But on Thursday, "an accident happened," he said.

Enos reported that three witnesses, all Manville residents, responded to the attack.

Shelly Scorpio, who called the police, told the officer she was at home on Vose Street "when she heard a woman screaming and dogs howling and barking." She then "observed a pit bull attacking two small leashed dogs being held by a woman" as Ronald Fealhaber, who said he had heard the commotion while working in his yard on nearby Railroad Street, ran in to help.

He told Enos "he ran toward the scene and assisted by jumping on the pit bull and administering strikes to the dog's face area," freeing Poochie.

He then put a leash on Tank, "who he was able to calm down and control."

It was at that time that Ashley Macksoud, of Bouvier Avenue, saw the incident and drove Molina and the dogs home to Railroad Street, the report states.

"Macksoud informed me Molina stated she was going to transport the dogs to an animal hospital in her own vehicle," Enos states.

When Enos arrived on scene, he "observed several blood spots on the asphalt of the parking lot," and saw the pit bull, who "appeared to be calm," sitting and wearing a leash provided by Scorpio.

Fealhaber then reportedly walked the dog to the rear cage area of Enos' cruiser. Enos later "transported the pit bull to the Lincoln Animal Shelter without incident."

Tank reportedly did not have on his own collar or tags, something Moussa said was not common. He said the dog is always wearing a collar with a name tag and his registration, but "I can't find it." He said it may have gotten lost that day after Tank got loose.

Enos was therefore not able to immediately identify the dog, though he was advised that the dog may be the Moussas. Enos was not able to get in touch with the family until he was filling out the police report and received a phone call transferred from the dispatcher.

It was Moussa, "who had called headquarters to report his dog missing from his back yard," Enos said.

Moussa said when he first heard that his dog had injured a woman and killed her dog, he knew he had to have the dog put down. However, once he learned what dogs were involved and the extent of Molina's injuries, Moussa said he reconsidered.

Tyson and Poochie had provoked Tank before, Moussa said, claiming his dog has a scar on his nose from where he was bit two months ago while on a leash.

"The two dogs were vicious dogs themselves," he said.

Moussa said his dog "didn't viciously go after (Molina)" and that he could have done more damage "if he wanted to hurt her."

He said he plans to bring Tank home once he is able, and keep him on a leash. Moussa said he will apologize to Molina.

Comments

Let me start by saying that most insurance companies require home owner's with certain dogs to carry additional insurance. Many companies will not even sell you a policy if you own certain dogs. With that said, I am not in favor of Breed specific legislation, I do however believe that if you own a dog who's breed is considered "dangerous" it should be mandatory that the animal be spayed/neutered and that the owner and his dog attend obedience classes.

Mr Mousa, if you are lucky enough to get your dog back, I strongly suggest you follow the advice above. If you cannot afford to have your dog neutered and attend obedience classes, then you cannot afford to have a dog.

There have been way too many injuries involving the Pit Bull bread, when will Lincoln get smart and ban them, as did Pawtucket, maybe when a little child is malled.
If you can love a pit bull as an owner you can select and love and care for any other breed.
This is a dangerous breed and most of the time is not controlled by the owner.

Pit Bulls are not dangerous they are only as dangerous as their owners allow them to be!If you are an owner of a Pit Bull you must be responsible, i.e. obedience class, just like any other dog they need attention, & lots of LOVE!They are loving animals after all!

It is very disheartening to hear city officials take the position that "it's okay that the pit bull has a preference for attacking dogs".... if it preferred people, we'd have a problem...

Are you so short-sighted that you cannot "connect the dots" and know that if a dog is attacked, there will likely be a human victim as well? Do you have so many stray dogs running around your city that you feel no human companion will be present? A human that will be fighting for their animal's survival, likely without care for their own life? And why, in your narrow perspective, is not the life of an innocent animal of value? How about if it was YOUR animal? Would you be offended then, if a vicious dog grabbed it by the throat while you stood helplessly by, listening to it cry for help.. help that you were unable to provide, given the magnitude of the attacker? You disgust me.

The carnage caused by Pitbulls and other dangerous bully dog breeds cannot be reduced to a "DOG BITE" problem. Normal dogs bite and release. Baseball bats, stun guns, and bricks don't have any effect on attacking pitbulls. Pitbulls are shredding dogs, cats, horses, and farm animals. Pet owners often suffer from physical injuries when they try to protect their pets and the psychological trauma is severe. Listening and watching your pet cry out in pain while they are torn into little pieces by a pitbull leaves the victims with lasting Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Victims of Pitbull attacks on their pets are victims, too. They are afraid to be outside and if their dog survives an attack, the dog is NEVER THE SAME. Dogs also experience Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

What a narcicisstic POS! "His dog is being punished because he did something bad" - with choices come consequences... both the dog AND the owner need to be punished, and severely. The dog needs to be euthanized, as even the owner admits that he has a tendency to "go after animals"... THAT IS NOT OKAY... EVER.... not even once! The owner needs to get cited for every violation (dog roaming at large, dog without tags/proof of rabies, etc) AND the owner of the Yorkie needs to sue the guy in civil court... name his parents as accomplices. Use the "they knew or should have known" that they were harboring a dangerous animal in their home... THEY own the home.. THEY are just as liable as the son... The owner of the pit showed a small amount of remorse that his parents are being dragged into this... drag them to hell and back... maybe he'll do the right thing and euthanize that dog - he is only thinking about himself.What a narcicisstic POS! "His dog is being punished because he did something bad" - with choices come consequences... both the dog AND the owner need to be punished, and severely. The dog needs to be euthanized, as even the owner admits that he has a tendency to "go after animals"... THAT IS NOT OKAY... EVER.... not even once! The owner needs to get cited for every violation (dog roaming at large, dog without tags/proof of rabies, etc) AND the owner of the Yorkie needs to sue the guy in civil court... name his parents as accomplices. Use the "they knew or should have known" that they were harboring a dangerous animal in their home... THEY own the home.. THEY are just as liable as the son... The owner of the pit showed a small amount of remorse that his parents are being dragged into this... drag them to hell and back... maybe he'll do the right thing and euthanize that dog - he is only thinking about himself.

Houston Texas Free Community Event to Support and Prevent Victims of Pitbulls and other...www.pitbullattackhelp.com
Houston,Texas Free Community Event in The Woodlands-Spring area of Houston Texas explains why pitbull attack victims need support, why a pitbull attack is not just a dog bite, and offers free entertainment, Halloween activities, children's entertainment and live music on October 19th 2013.